Parcel Rates to the United States
Centennial Period

There were three U.S. parcel post rate periods during the Centennial era :

1. July 1, 1961 to September 30, 1967
2. October 1, 1967 to September 30, 1969
3. October 1, 1969 to August 31, 1976

This post shows stamped address labels from St. Matthew Lutheran Church, North Tonawanda, N.Y., to Lutheran churches in Northeastern Ontario, mailed during each of the above periods. The rates are for >1 lb. , ≤ 2 lb. parcels. The cards had the Canadian address on one side and the U.S. address on the other side.

The U.S. rates to Canada remained unchanged during this period and were in effect from May 1, 1967 to June 30, 1971. The ≤ 2 lb. parcel rate was $1.00


1. July 1, 1961 to September 30, 1967

Up to 12 ounces: 5 cents 4 oz. 1 cent per oz. up to 12 oz., over 12 oz. full lb. rate applied,
40 cents for the first lb. , then 15 cents/lb. up to 10 lb., then 5 lb. increments to 25 lb.

Canadian Address Side


N. Tonawanda to Wawbewawa (Cobalt, Ont. Customs handstamp August 4, 1967)
$1.00 ≤ 2 lb rate ( from May 1, 1967)


United States address side


Wawbewawa, Ont., to N. Tonawanda, September 30, 1967
55 cents paying the >1 lb. , ≤ 2 lb.
40 cents for the 1st lb. + 15 cents for the next pound
(Last day of rate)


2. October 1, 1967 to September 30, 1969

Eight oz. packages - 10 cents up to 4 oz., 15 cents over 4 oz. up to 8 oz., over 8 oz. up to 1 lb. 45 cents, and 20 cents for each additional lb. up to and including 10 lb.


Canadian Address Side


N. Tonawanda to Wawbewawa (Cobalt, Ont. Customs handstamp February 10, 1969)
$1.00 ≤ 2 lb rate ( from May 1, 1967)


United States address side


Wawbewawa, Ont., to N. Tonawanda, undated Englehart roller cancellation
65 cents paying the >1 lb. , ≤ 2 lb.
45 cents for the 1st lb. + 20 cents for the next pound


3. October 1, 1969 - August 31, 1976

75 cents for the first lb., then 25 cents/lb. up to 25 lb.

Canadian Address Side


N. Tonawanda to Englehart, February 27, 1971
$1.00 ≤ 2 lb rate ( from May 1, 1967)


United States address side


Englehart, Ont., to N. Tonawanda, undated Englehart roller cancellation
$1.00 paying the >1 lb. , ≤ 2 lb.
75 cents for the 1st lb. + 25 cents for the next pound

1928 - 1930 : George V Scroll Issue

International Peace Centenary
Rates, Domestic
Rates, International

1969 Stephen Leacock

Stephen Leacock (1869-1944) was a humorist, essayist, teacher, political scientist, and historian. He was the English-speaking world's best-known humorist, 1915-25.



Canada Post honoured the centennial of Leacock's birth with a commemorative stamp issued November 12, 1969.


National Archives of Canada


First Day Covers

Leacock Summer House - Orillia Slogan

Leacock had a summer house in Orillia, Ontario, which is now a National Historic Site. Leacock created the fictional Canadian town of Mariposa as the setting for a series of short stories published in one volume as Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town. Although Leacock publicly denied it, the town was closely modelled on the town of Orillia and its inhabitants.


MARIPOSA--SUNSHINE TOWN


Orillia, November 12, 1969






Canada Post Office Publicity First Day Cover


Mailed to St. Thomas, Jamaica


Postmaster, Ottawa, Replacement Cover


Replacement cover mailed to Pfaffenhofen, West Germany


Replacement cover insert


Shering






Canada Envelope Company






Chickering/Jackson




Overseas Mailers




Overseas Mailers insert


H and E




David M. Pritchard




Kingswood


Autographed by cachet designer


Artopages




Rosecraft







The McGill Fund Council






Usages

Domestic Letter


Toronto local, December 9, 1969
6 cents domestic letter rate

 Ste-Anne-de-Beloeil to Maldon, England, November 28, 1969
6 cents preferential surface letter rate to Great Britain

Pitney-Bowes Mark II Facer Canceller

In the  1960s, the Pitney-Bowes Mark-II facer-canceller was installed at several post offices in Canada. The machine worked on a reflected light principle to detect a stamp's location on the envelope. A light beam reflected from the moving letter into the machine's electric eye sensors activated the mechanism.

Mark-II Cancellation

Once the machine detected the stamp, the letter was directed to a properly oriented canceller. The canceller parts of the machine were identified by a number followed by a letter within the dater. Two parallel bars (trail bars) to the left of the dater characterized the Mark-II canceller.


Montreal canceller "4A" cancellation with trail bars.


Toronto

Toronto canceller 1A
June 9, 1965

Winnipeg

 Both the Sefacan and Mark-II facer canceller were used to face and cancel mail at the Winnipeg post office. Kenneth Rose reported in his BNA Topics article "Tagging Along" that the Sefacan machine was outperforming the Mark-II:

"Mr. M. Gardiner, who is engineer in charge of the electronic equipment in Winnipeg was most helpful in answering questions...he advised that Sefacan still has a big advantage over the new Pitney-Bowes Facer-Canceller (12% rejection as compared to nearly 30 %)...

 Kenneth Rose Tagging Along BNA Topics #3 (1971) 234

Winnipeg canceller 1B
January 21, 1961

Vancouver


Vancouver canceller 1A
January 8, 1970



Montreal


Montreal canceller, 2B
March 3, 1970


Problems Locating the Position of the Stamp on the Envelope

For the machine to properly identify the position of the stamp, there had to be sufficient contrast between the stamp and the envelope. The original orange colour of the 6 cent definitive stamp did not always allow the machine's sensors to locate the position of the stamp. The cover below shows what happened when darker Christmas Seals were affixed to the front of the envelope:


The Mark-II was fooled by the Christmas seals.
The 6 cent orange stamp was subsequently cancelled with a porelon roller.


Colour Change

The Canada Post Office changed the 6 cent stamp's colour from its original orange to black on January 1, 1970, to permit easier detection of the stamp's location by facer-canceller machines.



6 cent black
Ottawa canceller 3B
November 11, 1970


The 7 cent definitive stamp was issued in a dark green colour.


Vancouver canceller 1A
September 30, 1971


Slate was the colour chosen for the 8 cent defintive stamp.


Montreal canceller 3A
November 20, 1972

Incorrect Facing

Even with the dark coloured stamps, the facer could still misread the position of a stamp on an envelope.


Montreal canceller 2A
September 18, 1972

1969 Christmas

The 1969 Christmas stamps consisting of 5 cent and 6 cent denominations were issued on October 8, 1969, in sheet format, Winnipeg tagged and untagged. The 5 cent stamp was also issued in booklet panes of 10, tagged and untagged.



Canada Post Office Publicity first day cover


Canada Post Office's Stamp Press Release described the stamps as follows:

In making special Christmas stamps available for the prepayment of postage during the festive season the Canada Post office follows a practice established as an annual tradition in 1964. The 1969 issues, first Canadian Christmas stamps produced in full colour, provide recognition of the multi-racial structure of nation's population. The wondrous spirit of Christmas is exemplified in the upraised faces of children of several racial origins, eyes agleam with a brilliant light reflecting the mystic beauty and solemnity of the season. An enrichment of Canada's national life through it's multi-racial nature is rarely more evident that at Christmas when time honoured customs blend in the harmonious joy of the season. The uplifting spirit of Christmas, superficially obscured by an ever increasing commercialism, remains as an inner human personification of the traditional "Peace on Earth, Goodwill to all Men", a period in which even hard-pressed and harassed retail sales staffs exude a particular warmth and friendliness.

Booklet






Winnipeg Tag- One bar


Winnipeg Tag Sheet Stamps


Wpg Tag-One bar

Winnipeg Tag - 2 bar


Commissioned Art (1968 or 1969)


National Archives of Canada


First Day Covers

Shering






Canada Envelope Company






Overseas Mailers







H  and E




David Pritchard






Darnell






Kingswood (Fleetwood)






Kolor Kover




Artopages






Rosecraft










Cole Cover

Winnipeg tag


Usages

Domestic Letter


Toronto local letter, October 21, 1969
6 cents domestic letter rate



Toronto local registered letter, December 16, 1969
6 cents domestic letter rate + 50 cents registration fee


Printed Matter (Unsealed Christmas Card) to the United States


Montreal to Black River, N.Y., December 11, 1969
5 cents printed matter rate to the United States


Preferential Surface Letter Rate to Great Britain

Hamilton to Maldon, England, November 28, 1969
6 cents preferential surface letter rate to Great Britain


International Air Mail Letter



Montreal to Edinburgh, December 6, 1969
15 cents air mail letter rate to Great Britain